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After issuing a statement that Solidcore would defy Mayor Muriel Bowser’s new restrictions on indoor workout classes, the fitness company announced it has temporarily closed its DC studios after a visit from the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs. WUSA 9 reported the closure this morning.
“We commend the mayor for everything she has done to protect the people of DC and keep them safe during COVID. We continue to work with her office to come to a resolution around the operation of group fitness,” Solidcore CEO Anne Mahlum said in a statement emailed to Washingtonian this morning.
“We are not asking for an exception—we want boutique fitness to receive the same treatment as traditional gyms and restaurants in DC. We are confident we can continue to provide a safe, clean environment for our clients and coaches.”
#Breaking: "346,561 classes and more than 35,000 people and not one instance of community spread" – CEO of @solidcorestudio says depsite new COVID-19 restrictions they WILL REMAIN OPEN for indoor group workouts & telling @MayorBowser why in a letter to be delivered today. @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/9Va2X3aiEu
— Delia Gonçalves (@deliangoncalves) November 24, 2020
Bowser announced new Covid-19 restrictions on November 23 in light of spiking coronavirus cases. Since November 25, indoor workout classes in the city have been suspended, and outdoor fitness classes are capped at 25 people. (Customers are still allowed to go to gyms and do their own workouts, but capacity is limited to 50 percent.)
After Bowser announced these new restrictions, Mahlum wrote a November 24 letter to the mayor stating she would keep her doors open. It was co-signed by Trip O’Connell of the U Street F45 and Sunny Miller of Hustle DC.
“Our industry is keeping people safe and that is a provable fact,” wrote Mahlum in the letter. “Allowing restaurants, bars, and traditional gyms to stay open, but closing group fitness isn’t rooted in data or science.” In the letter, Mahlum states that group classes like Solidcore are safer than other public establishments, as they require folks to be masked and distanced, and have strict cleaning protocols.
Within days, Solidcore studios had been visited by DC regulators, according to tweets posted by Solidcore United, a group of Solidcare employees who banded together this summer over concerns that the company was not taking proper precautions to protect employees.
UPDATE: Solidcore is now closed in DC pic.twitter.com/JTgvvAn7EM
— Solidcore United (@SolidcoreU) November 28, 2020
While Solidcore has temporarily closed its DC locations, it seems as if many of the group’s spots across the country are still open for classes, according to its website.
Mimi Montgomery joined Washingtonian in 2018. She’s written for The Washington Post, Garden & Gun, Outside Magazine, Washington City Paper, DCist, and PoPVille. Originally from North Carolina, she now lives in Del Ray.
